Bath tube enclosure



1959 R. c. KAUFFMAN BATH TUB ENCLOSURE Filed April 22, 1957 VINVENTOR. Rmsm'r E. Kzmrrmn I '7'7'0RNE Y:

facilities.

2,914,715- r I BATH TUB' ENCLOSURE 1 I RohertjC- Kaufiman, Philadelphia, Pa.

Application April 22, 1957, Serial No. 654,396

solaims. 0114-149) l f invention-relates to a bath tub, enclosure, and more particularly relates toa sliding enclosure which is adapted to slide back against the rear wall of the bathing compartment when not in use, and to close the open side of the bath tub, when it is desired to utilize thebathing The usual enclosure for a bathing facility is generally vertically disposed, along the forward edge of the front wall of the tub; This-typeof enclosure'is either of a slidable two door arrangement or a folding door arrangement. As a result of this vertical disposition, these doors whenin collapsed or open position restrict theqpassageway to the user when he desires to gain access to the bathing facilities itself. r

' Itis therefore an object of my invention to provide a sliding enclosure for a bath tub which may be disposed inv water deflecting relation to one edge or wall of a bathing facility with which the enclosure is associated to prevent water from escaping, from the bathing facility when in use, and the entire portion of which may be vertically slidable away from said edge into a position which ing facility itself.

Another object of my invention is to provide a sliding enclosure for a bathing facility which will cooperate with the end walls of. said facility to provide a.continuous closure along-the exposed side thereof.

Another object of my invention is to provide a sliding enclosure which is operable as a single unit thereby permitting ease of handling by the user.

Another object of my invention is to provide a sliding,

enclosure for a bathing facility which is easy to maneuver and is not a hazard when operated by small children.

Another object of my invention is to provide a sliding enclosure for a bathing facility, the sealing abutting edges of which are simple in construction and enable raising or lowering of the enclosure either from the interior or exterior thereof with simplicity. Other-objects of my invention are toprovide an improved device of the character described, that is easily and economically produced, which is sturdy in construction, and which is highly effective in operation.

With the above and related objects in view, my invention consists in the details of construction and combination of parts, as will be more fully understood from the following description, when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, in which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a sliding enclosure for a bathing facility embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is an end view thereof showing the sliding enclosure in lowered or closed position.

in 2,914,775 Patented Dec. 1,

wall of the facility has secured thereon a shower head 20, a spigot 22, and valves 24 for the control of water therefrom. The tub 12 has a front wall 26 which extends between the end walls 16 and 18 in a generally flat orientation therebetween.

The enclosure A comprises a pair of generally U- shaped trackways 30 which are secured respectively upon the end walls 16 and 18 in spaced, but registering relationship. Each of the trackways arm is channel-shaped in cross section interiorly facing and has a front arm.32

downwardly extending and abutting the top of the front wall 26 of the tub. The rearward arm 34 of the trackway 30 extends downwardly upon the back wall 14 to a position intermediate the ends of the front arm 32. A. flange 36 is secured to the rear wall 14, and spaced therefrom to adjoin the lower ends of each trackway rearward arm 34.

Slidably supported between the trackways 30 is a flexible door 40 which is integrally formed of a suitable plastic material such as resin-impregnated fibre glass or metal such as aluminum or galvanized steel. For strength of construction, it is preferable that the sliding door 40 be corrugated in order that longitudinal rigidity be afforded without detracting from lateral flexibility.

The lower forward edge of the door 40 is mounteda the entire extrusion and acting as a projecting handle for lifting the door from the interior of the tub. Correspondingly an outwardly projecting portion 64 co-planar with the horizontal portion 56 acts as a handle for lowering or raising the door 40 from the interior of .the tub. At the juncture of the cross bar 60 and the leg 54 is an inwardly extending uncinated projection 66 having a bifurcated end 68. similar bifurcation 7t exists on the free end of the horizontal portion 56. The juncture of the leg 54 and the bight portion 58 is formed with a delta-shaped slot longitudinally extending across the entire lower edge of the extrusion, and within this slot is mounted a triangular gasket 72, the apex of the gasket inwardly and downwardly projecting for abutting engagement with the upper surface of the tub wall 26 whereby a, sealis afforded for directing water inwardly into the tub. The corrugated door is slid within the extrusion 50 so that the lower edge thereof is wedged behind the delta-shaped slot walls and the first valley of the corrugation is firmly grasped on either side thereof by the bifurcations 68 and 70.

The rearward lower edge of the door 40 is mounted within a longitudinally extending extrusion 80, the extrusion being generally S-shaped in cross section. One loop of the figure 8-shaped extrusion is contoured to inter-fit with the bottom wave of the corrugation, and the crossbar 84 of the 8 has a bifurcated end 86 which is spaced from the adjacent wall and adapted to pinch therebetween the first crest of the corrugation. The other loop of the 8 is split diagonally opposite from the bifurcated portion 86, adjacent projectionsat the split being pronged to grasp securely the first'valley of the corrugation. See Fig. 3.

As is easily apparent from the foregoing description, my invention is applied and operates in the following manner: The U-shaped trackways 30 are secured to opposite end walls 16 and 18 of the bathing facility by suitable mounting means. The corrugated door is cut to the proper size along, the corrugation and oneedge of the corrugation is inserted within the extrusion 86 as set forth hereinbefo're as shown in Fig. 3. The opposite edge of the corrugated door is slidably secured.

within the extrusion 50 whereby the handle 62 and the gasket 72 are directed internally. In order to open the enclosure A it is merely necessary to pull upward upon either the exterior handle 64 or the interior handle 62 until the extrusion 80 is engaged within the flange 36. In order to utilize the enclosure as a curtain, it is merely necessary to slidably draw dovm the door 40 by handle 62 until the gasket 72 abuts upon the upper surface of the tub wall 26. i

. It is to be particularly noted that when my enclosure is not in use, the door 40 is drawn upwardly to define a canopy above the tub and permits the entire area above the tub wall 26 to be unobstructed and freely accessible. Although my invention has been described in considerable detail, such description is intended as being illustrative rather than limiting, since the invention may be variously embodied, and the scope of the invention is to be determined as claimed.

I claim as my invention:

1. In combination with a bathtub, opposed inverted U-shaped trackways affixed above the bathtub to' walls abutting against the ends thereof, each of said trackways including a medial arcuate portion, a forward vertical portion extending downwardly therefrom and having a lower. edge terminating at the forward rim of the bathtub, and a one-piece, horizontally-corrugated flexible curtain slidable in said trackways, said curtain being slidably disposed in a drawn position in a vertical plane within said trackways so as to leave the upper portion of the bathub unobstructed and said curtain being adapted to be slidably withdrawn into the arcuate portion of said trackways to define a canopy over the bathtub.

2. The invention of claim 1 wherein said curtain is an integrally molded fibre glass member.

3. The invention of claim 2 wherein a metal extrusion longitudinally extends across and is affixed to the lower 7 front edge of said curtain, said extrusion being substantially- G-shaped in cross section and including a horizontal portion having one bifurcated end, a vertical leg downwardly extending from said horizontal portion intermediate the ends thereof, a bight portion extending from said leg spaced from and parallel to said horizontal portion in the direction of the bifurcated end thereof, a second vertical leg shorterfthan said first leg spaced therefrom and parallel thereto, opposed diagonally extending converging walls integrally joined to the corresponding adjacent ends of said'second vertical leg and said bight portion, said converging walls being spaced adjacent the projected intersection of said second vertical leg and said bight portion, a medial wall interconnecting said converging walls at. the maximum divergence thereof to define a delta-shaped slot, a cross bar outwardly projecting from said. second leg, an uncinated member inwardly projecting from said second leg at the juncture of 'saidsecon-d leg and said cross bar and including a bifurcated end, and a triangular gasket interfitting within said delta-shaped slot and'having the apex thereof extending outwardly from the slot for abutment with the front rim of the bathtub, said bifurcated ends of said horizontal portion and said uncinated member respectively being in engagement with the corresponding opposed surfaces of said curtain, and said horizontal portion and said'cross bar defining exteriorand interior handles respectively for opening and drawing said curtain. g

4. In combination with a bathtub recessed within an alcove and abutting against a back wall and opposed end walls; opposed inverted U-shaped trackways afiixed to the respective end walls, each ofsaid trackways including a forward vertical portion having the lower edge thereof terminating at the forward rim of the bathtub, and a flexible shower curtain slidable in said trackways, said curtain when in drawn position being disposed entirely within the vertical portions of said trackways so that the upper portion of the bathtub will be unobstructed, said curtain being further adapted to be slidably disposed into the upper portion of said trackway and to define a canopy over the bathtub, and wherein said curtain is a one-piece horizontally corrugated member.

5. The invention of claim 4 wherein saidtrackways are each channel-shaped in cross-section.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

